Abstract

The National Park Service functions through the conceptual framework of American culture, which derives from Christian ideas born in the Middle East. Biblical societies reacted to deserts in two ways. Most people shunned arid areas as dangerous and bereft of life. But a second belief drew prophets and others who sought retreat for meditation or seclusion. The National Park Service and the public initially held the negative view of the desert, but a rise in appreciation of its sublime character challenged that perception. Joshua Tree National Park shows how that change influenced the existence and management of an arid park.

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